Top 50 2024 - East of England - Fred Olsen Travel, Felixstowe

At the heart of the Felixstowe community and in its current location for 14 years, this agency is accustomed to clients dropping off gifts, whether that’s sausage rolls from the bakery down the road, or local specialities from overseas travels. Manager Gemma Hopkins and assistant manager Emily even attended the 60th birthday party of a regular in a local church hall. Clients in turn could find a bottle of wine or strawberries in their cabin or be gifted an airport lounge pass to start their holiday in style. The agents at this top-performing Fred Olsen store actively promote their own travels with stickers on brochures that say ‘We’ve visited here’ and QR codes on window offers that link to relevant blog posts from staff. The devil is in the detail for the team, with hours spent helping clients correctly complete visa forms. Word-of-mouth referrals generate the most bookings while targeted events such as an afternoon tea hosted with Azamara at a local hotel and an in-store Fred Olsen event both proved successes. There’s 160 years of travel agency experience in this branch, which is populated by long servers, and staff share their expertise with a monthly travel page in the local Spotlight magazine. Training is still a priority, with Gemma often heard to say: “Every day is a school day.” Part of the Felixstowe Chamber of Commerce, the agency was also represented in a “Love to Work” in Felixstowe event, and supports local causes with travel vouchers including a St John’s Ambulance fundraiser at The Dooley pub. All brochures are recycled with some passed along to a nursery for their “travel agent” role-play area, while the staff never miss an opportunity to encourage clients to book bed and breakfast and “eat out” to support the local economy.

fredolsentravelagents.co.uk